CNN's GUT CHECK | for July 9, 2013 | 5 p.m.
– n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

GONE IN 2014: Press Secretary Jay Carney said at the White House briefing on Tuesday that no decision on troop reduction in Afghanistan is imminent, and left open the idea that keeping no troops beyond 2014 is still an option. “We are not committed to troop presence just for troops there,” Carney said. Carney said that the government is committed to bringing the troop level down by 2014 when combat operations are slated to end. Carney said the presence after that time is a matter still being negotiated with the Afghan government.

BUT IS HE BLUFFING? There's no doubt that President Barack Obama has had his fill of Afghan President Hamid Karzai's on-again, off-again negotiations on how many U.S. troops would remain there after 2014. And there's no doubt that the relationship continues to deteriorate, CNN Chief National Correspondent John King said. “So If Karzai doesn't trust his own security forces, you lay this down that we might come back to a zero option, maybe you snap him into thinking, ‘I'd better get to get back to the negotiating table here,’” King said.

A few weeks ago, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel was credited with turning the tide on his city's chronic gun violence epidemic.

“Chicago Tactics Put Major Dent in Killing Trend,” trumpeted the New York Times in early June. At around the same time, a Time magazine cover profile about Emanuel headlined “Chicago Bull” by David Von Drehle said changes Emanuel “has made in the police department have put a dent in crime.”

What a difference a month can make.

In the past week with the weather getting warmer, gun violence has riddled Chicago streets. From Wednesday to Sunday over the July 4th weekend, more than 70 people were shot and 11 died, according to the Chicago Tribune. Three more people were shot and killed last night on Chicago's West Side, according to the Tribune. Among the dead: a 15-year-old boy.

For Emanuel and Chicago, the headlines – and positive narratives – are changing.

“Violence reverberates through the city, even with decline in shootings, homicides,” reads the headline to a comprehensive story in the Chicago Tribune. “Gangs, weather, access to guns, reluctant witnesses drive holiday weekend bloodshed,” reads the headline of a similar story in the Chicago Sun-Times.

Comparing Chicago to the Dante Aligheiri's “Inferno,” a 14th century novel that describers the horrors of hell, the Tribune's editorial on Tuesday seems to capture the horror coming from the Windy City.

“Dante's ‘Chicago,’ were he to write it today, would tell of a city understanding the vicious nature and impact of each shooting,” the editorial reads. “Law-abiding Chicagoans unable to escape the relentless gunplay on their streets would ruefully identify with the inscription on the gate to Dante's allegorical hell: ‘Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.’”

In light of the weekend’s violence – and after a 90-minute meeting with police on Monday – it appears Emanuel has a renewed urgency on crime.

“Having effective gun control is essential to providing safety around the city,” Emanuel said at a Tuesday press conference. Stressing that Chicago laws on guns need to be different than those around Illinois, Emanuel said that “gun control is essential.”

In order to pass stricter gun laws, Emanuel has called a special session of the City Council for next week. His hope, he said, is the council will vote on an updated assault weapons ban and approve stiffer penalties for those who commit gun crimes.

When asked why it was so urgent to call a special session, Emanuel said “we had a stark reminder over the weekend.”

the LEDEDid you miss it?

Leading CNNPolitics:Student loan fight heats up as Congress returns from break
House Republican leaders returned to Capitol Hill on Monday after a one-week break and immediately blamed Senate Democrats and the White House for a hike on interest rates for an estimated seven million students who plan to take out government-subsidized loans this year. – Deirdre Walsh and Ted Barrett

Leading Drudge:NYPD Releases Gas In Subway For Attack Drill
The NYPD is releasing harmless gases into the subway system during the morning rush beginning Tuesday to study how chemical weapons could be dispersed through the air. NBC NY

Leading HuffPo:Denied: Contentious Walker Law Blocked By Judge
A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order Monday evening to block enforcement of a new Wisconsin law that bans doctors who lack admitting privileges at nearby hospitals from performing abortions. – Scott Bauer

Leading Politico:Why sex-scarred pols keep coming back for more
Another week and there goes another fallen officeholder trying to claw his way back from tabloid purgatory — another chance for some people to marvel about the power of forgiveness and redemption, and other people to marvel about the power of egomania and pure chutzpah. It is one more occasion, in other words, for the vast majority of people who would stay crouched in a hole for years if they ever endured humiliation and disgrace of the sort Eliot Spitzer brought down on himself to wonder: What makes these guys tick? – John F. Harris and Alexander Burns

Leading The New York Times:Democrats Plan Challenge to G.O.P.’s Filibuster Use
Senate Democrats plan to force confirmation votes on appointments by President Obama, and to threaten rules changes to thwart Republican tactics like the filibuster. – Jeremy Peters

HOT SOTSThe political bites of the day

- Obama’s FBI nominee defends FISA courts -JAMES COMEY JR., OBAMA’S NOMINEE FOR DIRECTOR OF THE FBI, AT HIS CONFIRMATION HEARING: “In my experience, which is long, with the FISA court, folks don't realize that it's a group of independent federal judges who sit and operate under a statutory regime to review requests by the government to use certain authorities to gather info and it is anything but a rubber stamp. Anyone who knows federal judges and has appeared before federal judges, knows that calling them a rubber stamp shows you don't have experience before them.”

- House to vote on Obamacare repeal… again -HOUSE SPEAKER JOHN BOEHNER IN A PRESS CONFERENCE ON CAPITOL HILL: “I think what the president did is outrageous. The idea that we are going to give big businesses a break under Obamacare but we are going to punish small businesses and families? It is wrong and we will have another vote. Count on it.”

Gut Check Full Service:Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s office charges that Boehner is too focused on Obamacare… “This morning, Speaker Boehner told reporters 'to count on' the GOP voting again to repeal the Affordable Care Act … for the 38th time. It comes as no surprise that working on legislative solutions for the American people – or even just plain working – is not high on the list of priorities for Republican leaders. ... Over the next nine weeks, the House GOP is scheduled to be at work here in Washington just 15 days."

- Egypt: Still not a coup by WH standards -PRESS SECRETARY JAY CARNEY AT THE WHITE HOUSE PRESS BRIEFING: “The President has been meeting regularly with his national security tam about the situation in Egypt. You are also correct as I said yesterday that we have not made a determination about what to call or label the events in Egypt that led to the change in government there and I tried to be very straight forward about the elephant in the room, if you will, by saying there's an elephant in the room here and that it is in our national interest – the best interest of the United States, and the best interest, in our view of our goal in assisting the Egyptian people, in their transition to democracy to take the time necessary to evaluate the situation before making such a determination.”

- Clinton too old for her own party? -CONAN O’BRIEN ON HIS LATE NIGHT COMEDY SHOW: “I can't believe this, the next presidential election is still like three years away. They're already starting. They're already starting. Here's the latest, the Republicans are already trying to paint Hillary Clinton as too old to be president. In fact, the new ad claims she's so old, she could be a Republican.”

When President Franklin Delano Roosevelt died in 1945, Democrats in Congress were looking for ways to honor the long-serving president. In 1946, Democratic Rep. Ralph H. Daughton of Virginia introduced legislation that would put Roosevelt's image on the dime.

The dime, in particular, was chosen because of Roosevelt's work founding that National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis – better known as the March of Dimes. The group, which raised money for polio research, an ailment that Roosevelt suffered from, used to ask people to donate by sending the foundation a dime.

In what was a quick turnaround, the Roosevelt dime was released to the public on what would have been the president's 64th birthday – January 30, 1946.

soundoff(20 Responses)

obama is going to botch afghanistan just like he botched iraq, and libya, and egypt and syria. his record of incompetence is unmatched.

July 9, 2013 04:54 pm at 4:54 pm |

it must be said

Stressing that Chicago laws on guns need to be different than those around Illinois, Emanuel said that “gun control is essential.”
--

Typical liberal idiocy.... Yo need to do what NYC did to solve the problem. It is not rocket science and has been worked in the past. CATCH AND LOCK UP THE CRIMINALS!!

What ever happened to common sense in this country?

July 9, 2013 04:58 pm at 4:58 pm |

NC

@just saying nothing again-why don't you join the military?

July 9, 2013 05:28 pm at 5:28 pm |

tom l.

Sniffit said:
"What party? I don't have a party. Just because I rabidly oppose the complete and utter nonsense the GOP/Teatrolls want to subject the country to does not make me a Dem."

I want to thank you for the absolute funniest post you have ever written. Thank you for making my day and making me laugh so hard.

I have two new words for you that you are in desperate need of other than "perspective". The new two words are "self actualization"

July 9, 2013 05:30 pm at 5:30 pm |

Sheila

after reading the first article regarding karzide – he's corrupt – always has been – yet this country still sends him bags of cash – pathetic –

July 9, 2013 06:19 pm at 6:19 pm |

James

70 shot over the week end! They need 200 George Zimmermans on the street.

July 9, 2013 06:19 pm at 6:19 pm |

Sheila

""Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s office charges that Boehner is too focused on Obamacare""
That may be one of the reasons why the gop will end up losing in 2014 mid-terms. For some odd, unknown reason or another, the gop want to discuss / talk / and continue to keep "digging" into the things that will end up being something that's not as important to the voters in this country – I mean, they keep tearing apart things like health care / womens issues / & etc – instead of discussing & trying to resolving the real issues, such as Jobs / infrastructure & the list goes on.

July 9, 2013 06:25 pm at 6:25 pm |

Really

Well, Tom we have been subjected to Obama and the Democrats for going on 5 years now and the debt is 17 trillion and climbing. Obamacare delayed because "wait for it" the government cannot operate in an efficient enough capacity to get the job done. It's a shocker but there you have it. You speak of perspective then say you don't have a party and in the next breath say "Nonsense the GOP/Teatrolls wants to subject the country to?" Wow! I guess nothing that is going on in this country right now is any Democrats fault right? Pathetic! Real perspective is to STOP making excuses for these left wing humps. You got straight out lied to by the Messiah and you can't accept the reality of it. That is some real self actualization for YOU. Tommy Boy.

July 9, 2013 06:29 pm at 6:29 pm |

mikeyk

Yeah, Sure, Rham. I'm sure that a new "assault weapon" ban and other strict measures to keep guns out of the hands of law abiding citizens will surely fix your cities' violence problem. Because as we all know too well that gun control has worked soooo well in the past for keeping guns out of the hands of criminals.

I'm not sure if anyone knows but Illinois recently passed a law allowing law abiding citizens to carry. This may actually do something to help potential victims. Well... maybe not, because most of the victims of gun violence are criminals themselves. Also people convicted of murder have been released on parole from a previous offense about 95% of the time. Tragic that people are loosing their lives, yes certainly. But you reap what you sow.

Maybe more cops patrolling these high crime areas would help. These measures have been PROVEN to work. Maybe we should try that rather than the same old thing while problems continue to fester.

Obama's home town, or the midwest killing fields? Either way, chicago, the State of Illinois and Obama are embarrassments for the U.S.

July 9, 2013 06:48 pm at 6:48 pm |

Tony T

How is that hope and change working for you ,Rom? Please explain how a Catholic priest can be on the platform with someone who whole heartily supports abortion in any form ?

July 9, 2013 06:59 pm at 6:59 pm |

archer

The situation in Chicago is pretty sad but if Emanuel thinks that legislating stricter gun laws while ignoring the culture of violence that IS Chicago is going to help he will soon learn otherwise. I say ban all guns in Chicago then the Black leaders will have to come to grips with what the real reasons are...

July 9, 2013 07:19 pm at 7:19 pm |

Founder

Lets add even more laws to the books, because it is crystal clear that the dozens upon dozens already in force are not working.

Pathetic.

When will these folks realize that there is a class of people who are not, I repeat NOT, going to abide by society's rules, and by empowering them by disarming everyone else this problem only escalates? It does not work in an entire Country (Mexico), and it has not, nor will it ever work, in Chicago.

July 9, 2013 07:26 pm at 7:26 pm |

Loki

should do a story on Detroit–they have lots of shooting–plus high drama–3 of 9 City Council members have quit–on is on the run–a former mayor will likely be in prison yor 20-30 years–an Emergency Manager has been appointed to run the city–was planning to take some of the city's bond holders on a tour of the city–they had to sign liabilty waivers and have armed guards along for the ride–this tour has been cancelled

that happen when the foolish elect a fool guy like Mr. emmanuel he learn from his master Mr. Obama how play with the foolish

July 9, 2013 07:42 pm at 7:42 pm |

mikeyK

Yeah, sure... More gun control is the answer. It's worked so splendidly in the past, lets try it again.
After all, nothing fights crime better than disarming law abiding citizens. /sarcasm

Maybe more cops in these high crime areas would better. It's been PROVEN to work. Illinois recently passed a CCW law. Every time CCW was allowed in a jurisdiction it has been accompanied by a reduction in violent crime. It's been PROVEN to work.

Rather than trying the same old things maybe we should try something new.
"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results."

July 9, 2013 07:43 pm at 7:43 pm |

gt

What do you expect he is from Chicago in Illinois. They have 3 governors in prison. Oh yell Obama is from Chicago Also and look how he is doing. Do you see a common thread?

July 9, 2013 09:16 pm at 9:16 pm |

Joe from Kalispell

The Democrats have run Chicago and Illinois for decades. They've done a great job haven't they?

July 9, 2013 09:26 pm at 9:26 pm |

cbp

The troubles in Chicago are indeed sad. Every person who dies was someone's son, daughter, wife, sister husband or brother. We should all hope that those who kill will be caught, will go before a judge and jury and given a sentence that is in line with their deeds. No man can do this himself and Mayor Emmanuel needs help and needs support form the GOP and DEM. Can't we put politics aside and just do what is necessary? This logjam is the cause of too many problems in this country.